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Garrett eyed him over his glass.
“The burgers are great here,” Hawk explained. “You gotta try one.”
Garrett nodded and took another drink. Truthfully, Hawk was worried Garrett would get to drinking and forget that they were there to eat. It would not be the first time that had happened.
“Aw, man,” Garrett sighed, setting down the glass. “Gotta get a better day job.”
Hawk shifted in his seat. He really didn’t want to discuss this again. There was no way Shooter would hire an ex-car thief. “How’s your mom?” he asked instead.
Garrett’s shoulders drooped a little. Hawk wasn’t sure if it was because he’d changed the subject or because things weren’t that great at home. He knew his uncle wasn’t too happy with Garrett in general. His aunt had always been supportive of Garrett though, always believing that this was the year her baby boy would turn his life around. Hawk had spent little time with that side of the family lately. Perhaps Garrett’s mother’s enthusiasm for him had waned a bit.
Garrett shrugged and snagged a fry out of Hawk’s basket. “Fine,” he said in a clipped voice.
Right. So that was off limits. There was no point in getting Garrett agitated, especially at a bar.
“Dad’s pissed ‘cause I don’t pay much in rent. But fuck you know it’s not like I’m living in the house,” Garrett seethed. “Oh no, not good enough for that. I took the room over the garage.” His jaw flexed as he ground his molars together. “God damn room ain’t worth what the old man wants in rent,” he said quietly. “They use my old room for storage. Storage! Boxes everywhere, stacked to the ceiling.”
Hawk didn’t know what to say. He didn’t want to point out that Garrett was over 35 and really shouldn’t be living at home anyway. Unfortunately, Garrett wouldn’t make it on his own. Without someone around to keep a constant eye on him, he’d slide right back into prison, maybe for good this time.
“And then he wants all this yard work done,” Garrett said. “Like I don’t work my ass off all day long.”
Hawk scowled. Uncle Gene had high blood pressure. Until Garrett had gotten released, it had been Hawk doing their yard work. “Garrett, he’s almost 75.”
Garrett rolled his eyes. “Mom’s younger.”
Hawk took a long sip of his lemonade as Garrett finished off his beer and ordered a second.
“What do you say we hang out tonight?” Garrett offered.
Hawk shook his head. “Can’t. I have plans.”
Garrett smirked. “So blow off whatever hottie you’re stringing along. My guess? She won’t care as long as you tell her you’ll see her some other time. Or better yet,” he said, leaning forward, “How ‘bout you and me pick up a few together?”
“It’s not like that,” Hawk explained, but Garrett didn’t seem to hear him.
“Remember that time we got wasted with those two chicks from Lead? We climbed that water tower to spray paint it. But we forgot the paint.”
Hawk grimaced. He did remember, but apparently not as fondly as Garrett. He stabbed his coleslaw with a fork.
“So?”
He realized Garrett had been asking him something and looked up. “What?”
Garrett huffed an irritated sigh. “Let’s go find some pussy.”
He said it too loudly, and Hawk couldn’t help but glance at the waitress. Milo had looked over as well. Thankfully, Maria wasn’t here, because she might smack the shit out of both of them. Lunch hour was not the time to say a thing like that.
“I can’t,” Hawk repeated. “I have plans.”
“What plans?” Garrett demanded, disbelieving.
“We-” On Weekend nights they hung out at Maria’s. Hawk didn’t think Garrett knew it was every weekend night, and it probably wasn’t a good idea to let him know. The last thing he needed was Garrett showing up again, looking for him. “There’s a girl I’m hanging out with.”
Garrett shook his head. “The lily white princess.”
“She’s going through some stuff,” Hawk replied.
“ ‘Cause I’m not,” Garrett muttered.
Hawk didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t abandon Tildy. She could be in danger. Garrett seemed to be in danger, too, but of his own making.
“Not tonight,” Hawk told his cousin.
Later, much later, Hawk rolled back into the Burnout parking lot. Rather than having smoothed things over with Garrett, lunch had just highlighted their differences. He was angry now and angrier still when he caught sight of the clock on the wall. He didn’t need to look at Shooter to know that he’d fucked up today. They had a deadline and Hawk was dragging them down. Without acknowledging his boss, he picked up a wrench and buckled down.
Chapter 32
Tildy’s phone vibrated, and she checked the screen. She couldn’t help but smile.
“Mmm,” Mariposa said, a knowing look on her face. “Your boyfriend.”
Tildy blushed and shook her head. “He’s not my boyfriend. He’s just a friend,” she reminded the older woman.
